[Keynote Address] 

Beyond genes and parents: The effects of cultural products on human psychology

Speaker：Emanuele Castano, Ph.D.（University of Florence）

 

The human mind is shaped by a complex interplay of factors. Genetic inheritance lays the foundation, predisposing us to certain cognitive tendencies and emotional patterns. These are then shaped by parents and caregivers, and increasingly by other adults and peers as we, as children, enter the instructional system and further acquire social attitudes, norms, values. All the while, exposure to cultural products begins exerting their twofold influence on our mind: what we think and how we think. In my presentation, I focus on the latter. I propose that cultural products can be heuristically distinguished between Confirming and Challenging, provide evidence of the distinctive features of these two classes of products, and present data as well as a theoretical model of how these features impact our social cognition and ultimately shape the way we see and navigate the social world, from interpersonal relationships to life in complex societies.

 

Biography: 

Dr. Emanuele Castano is a Professor of Psychology at the University of Florence and a researcher at the Institute for Cognitive Science of the Italian National Research Council. His research interests include violent intergroup conflict and reconciliation, nationalism and international relations, and the existential motives of human behavior. His latest work examines the impact of cultural products on social cognition and democracy. He has published over 60 scientific articles in top-tier journals and has received numerous research grants from various agencies and foundations, including the National Science Foundation, the National Endowment for the Arts, and the European Commission.